Although we wrote a couple of entries about Matthew Lopez a few weeks ago, and interviewed both the playwright of "The Whipping Man" (TWM) and its director in the Berkshires, Christopher Innvar, there's plenty more.
TWM is getting twin premieres - tonight, as I write this, it is having its first preview at Barrington Stage Company's Linden Street Stage II. A week ago it had it official West Coast opening in San Diego.
In the video below, Lopez seems taken with San Diego, but now that he is in the Berkshires, he's bound to find ample reason to like it here, too. Unfortunately, we can't offer him a stipend to be the "playwright in residence" as San Diego's Old Globe has done.
In terms of tickets for this play, the first week is already sold out, and I suspect that this is going to be very popular with Berkshire audiences, all the more so because Matthew is one of us. They've added two Sunday matinees to the original schedule, too. Go here www.barringtonstageco.or to get your tickets before they are gone. It has been selling out, especially on weekends, though new performances have been added through June 17.
Playwright Matthew Lopez is juggling two openings for his play, The Whipping Man. Tonight, in San Diego, the Old Globe production gets reviewed. Meanwhile under the direction of Chris Innvar, rehearsals at Barrington Stage Company are well underway as they prepare for the BSC debut in two weeks.
Matthew reports that he has put on eight pounds since they started rehearsals, and blames the whirlwind schedule for causing his usual discipline to lapse. For the latest on this up and coming gay playwright, see the article immediately below this one.
Julianne Boyd, Artistic Director of Barrington Stage Company thinks Matthew "Is such a fun person because he's so effervescent. He's very witty, and it's no secret that I am in love with his play, it's fabulous. The only problem is he's so up all the time, he makes me look downright boring."
The writer has a more serious side, too. Lopez talks candidly with me about the genesis of The Whipping Manhere in Berkshire on Stage.
Above is one of the first photos of the Barrington Stage cast together and below are some fresh production photos from San Diego that are in tonight's press kits. The energy and tension apparent in these images testify to the compelling nature of this show. And it is visual proof as to why you should not, can not, must not miss The Whipping Man.
Performances (May 26 to June 17) of "The Whipping Man" are Tuesday through Friday at 7:30pm, Wednesdays at 2pm, Saturdays at 4pm and 8pm, and Sunday at 3:00 and 7:3pm at BSC Stage 2, 36 Linden St., Pittsfield. Opening Night: Sat., May 29 at 8pm. Tickets: $15-$45. Seniors: $20 all matinees. Pay What You Can Night for 35 year olds and younger: Fri., June 4 at 7:30pm. For ticket information call 413-236-8888, stop by the BSC Box Office at 30 Union Street, or visit www.barringtonstageco.org.
Playwrights like Matthew Lopez have a keen eye and ear for what turns audiences on, and, it turns out that Matthew has a finely tuned sense of irony and humor as well. Here's a video he recently shared. This takeoff on Dreamgirls by Israel Cortez (who could be his stunt double) is a hoot, a real knee slapper. Creative souls need lots of clever nourishment to keep the good stuff coming, and the video proves that good performances are a lot more than just lip synching.
While the Matthew Lopez drama The Whipping Man is serious rather than funny, it is a fascinating look into a subject you have probably never thought about.
Lopez likes to write about underdogs ... people who don't make it into the history books but are somehow caught up in the wheels of historic events. One of his plays is about a young man dealing with the after-effects of a gay-bashing. Another is about a New York family of Puerto Rican performers who are evicted from their home in 1959 to make way for Lincoln Center. The Whipping Man tackles an even more arcane subject.
It's about a post-Civil War Jewish Confederate soldier and his former slaves, who share his faith. He returns home to find the place in ruins, but with his now freed slaves still there. Filled with twists and turns, Lopez's play examines Caleb's moral ambiguity, Simon's guileless loyalty to his former owner, John's ideas as a newly radical freeman, and the approaching Exodus in the post-Emancipation South. The production will feature Clarke Peters (HBO’s Treme and The Wire), LeRoy McClain and Nick Westrate. Christopher Innvar directs the Barrington Stage production at Stage 2 ( 36 Linden Street , Pittsfield ).
To read more about Matthew Lopez and the reasons he wrote this play, visit my primary site, Berkshire On Stage
The Whipping Man has just begun rehearsals at Barrington Stage Company. There will be several low cost previews beginning on May 26 with the official opening May 29. (NOTE: Now opened to universally positive reviews, it has been selling out and the run has been extended to June 17.) It has had an almost simultaneous opening at the Old Globe Theatre is San Diego. Lopez was just named playwright in residence for that company.
For more information and tickets, visit Barrington Stage Companyand while you are at it, be sure to check out Berkshire On Stage for the latest performing arts news and reviews.
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50 years in the arts and entertainment industry. A member of GLECA, the Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association. Much to the chagrin of his late father, he has spent his life in the arts instead of the lifetime civil service job his parents wanted him to take.
Working for small theater companies taught him to be frugal, while time at larger institutions such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Ballet made him an expert on the inside workings of the nonprofit arts field.
During his long working life, he drew experience and paychecks from Warner Brothers, Universal International, Sweetheart Plastics, TDF, Arts Boston and many other companies.
He says: "Today I admire creative artists more than ever. They give meaning to life."
